The 43rd Hunger Games
by NateRiveter
Summary: Matt, from District 6, participates in a Hunger Games that are quite unique... Please leave a review with a critique on how I can get better! That's the point of writing!
1. The Reaping

"Wake up you lazy bum!" My little sister Kirsten shouts.

I open my eyes and see my little sister in my doorway with a cupcake in hand.

"Mom got these for the reaping day1" She says, twirling in a circle with the cupcake above her.

"Aw, thanks Kirsten." I say sweetly. I'm usually not that nice to my siblings, but today is the reaping day.

"Come into the kitchen!" She tugs me out of bed.

"One second. I need to get my reaping clothes on" I say, pushing her out of the room. I slip into a white button-up shirt. I put on a pair of tan pants. I leave the 3 top buttons of my shirt undone. I walk into the bathroom. I have short hair, that I like to keep up in spikes. I smile in the mirror. _Who wouldn't sponsor you?_

I walk down into the kitchen. My whole family is there, with my mom dishing out a nice slice of bacon to each of us, onto a neat little piece of toast.

"Bacon?" I ask ridiculously.

"I thought I should spend a little more money this reaping day." She says nicely.

My dad walks into the room. "Hello kids!" He says. I always see my dad in a suit, because he works with the mayor. He does some sort of financial crap, but I've never bothered to learn what it is. I have four other siblings, three sisters and one brother. My two oldest sisters are too old to be in the reaping this year, but me and my brother are. My brother, Tanner, is 12, so he'll only go in once. I'm 16, so I'll go in four times. Kirsten's too young to be in the reaping, I wish I could live in childhood, not being in the reaping, dancing around holding a cupcake.

Some kids in our district, mainly the poorer end, has to get tesserae. We're not rich, but my dad's job in the government brings us to the top five percent in our district. I've never thought the tesserae was fair, forcing the poorer kids to risk their lives. But I'm not one to complain.

I look at the time on the stove. It's a bit past 7:00.

"Mom, I'm going. Meet you at the square." I call out as I open the front door.

"Bring this for her and her family." She calls back. She brings me a plate filled with cupcakes.

I walk down the street. We live on the nicer part of District 6, the north end. The one where the government families live. My girlfriend lives in the middle class area, a couple blocks away. I run the rest of the way to her house.

I knock on the door and her brother Ethan immediately opens it. He is too young to be in the reaping, being only 11 years old. But this is his last year being safe, so he better enjoy it. He invites me in, and I sit on the couch for ten or so seconds until she comes down the stairs. She's absolutely stunning in a white dress with red lines curving in a pattern around the skirt. She comes up and embraces me.

"Good luck Matt." She whispers.

"And may the odds be ever in your favor Julia." I whisper back.

"We stand like that for ten or so seconds until Julia's mother walks in. I offer her the cookies and she takes them graciously.

Julia walks with me down to the square, which isn't that far from her house. We seem to be pretty early though. Only about half the square is full. She kisses me on the lips and we go to register. I go into the roped section with a sign that says "BOYS 16" and wait for what seems an eternity. I think about what will happen if Julia gets called. Of course it would be a requirement to go visit her before she leaves, but what will I do for those next few weeks? What if I get called for that matter? What will she do for the next few weeks?

I come back to reality in time to see that the town square is now full of people. I get a glimpse of Julia in the girls section before our Capitol representative comes up. Porquia, or Porky as shes called behind her back, goes to the front. She has hot pink skin, and a lighter tone of pink in her hair. She has stencils on her cheeks and arms and talks in a high voice.

I ignore her voice, partly because it sounds more like screeching, partly because its gotten boring. Blah blah children blah blah rebellion blah blah blah. As if we didn't know. Then shes plunging her hand into the reaping ball and calling the name. I manage to listen, mostly so I can hear if its Julia.

Porquia reads the name, then seems to look right at me, and reads the name.

"Adriana Julhaunne!"

Everybody turns to the girls section as a girl 15 years of age walks up the stage. Adriana seems neither sad nor happy, but oddly confused. The representative calls on everybody to cheer in her bubbly voice, and a couple people start, but then awkwardly stop. Then shes plunging her hand into the boys reaping ball and reading it. Once again she stares right at me and time stops.

"Tanner Huntback!"

I vaguely recognize that as my brother's name and suddenly have a thought. I remember making myself a promise that if my brother was called, I would volunteer. Of course, I may have just done that to make myself feel good, as I was actually defying the Capitol with that thought.

Porquia is calling for volunteers and I tell myself that its now or never. I think back to past tributes. Nobody volunteered for them. Why should I? Then I know that I couldn't face little Kirsten if I didn't do this.

"I volunteer." I call calmy.

Everybody turns their heads toward me and Porquia acts like she won the lottery.

"Hooray! We have a volunteer. I walk to the front, past my brother Tanner. He looks me in the eye and I manage to smile at him.

I walk to the front and just now notice how large our district is. District 6. Porquia continues talking, but I'm not listening. Nor am I concerned about the Hunger Games. I don't see my family in the crowd, but I see little Kirsten in my mind, waving around that cupcake.


	2. The Train

Julia sits with her face burrowed into my shoulder on the couch for what I wish could be an eternity. Then the Peacekeepers drag her lifeless body away, and I see she's sobbing. Then my whole family comes in, and they're all just silently hugging me. They let go, and then Kirsten walks to a point three feet away and then points her finger at me accusingly.

"You better come back here soon!" She says with her brows furrowed.

"You bet Kirsten." I say crouching down next to her. No matter what emotions I have overflowing inside of me, I must stay strong in front of Kirsten. Tanner stares blankly at me for a couple seconds and then makes an attempt at thank you.

"Win. And do it fast." Tanner says blankly.

"I promise." I say, this time more seriously than I said to Kirsten. Our whole family then stand hugging for a couple of minutes until the Peacekeepers take me, not my family away. I cross the square towards the train. A barrage of camera flashes attacks from every single angle. I'm tempted to run towards the train and shut the doors behind me, but then I remember what I told myself this morning.

_Who wouldn't sponsor you? _And then I smile and wave at the cameras. I vaguely see Adriana next to me, and I nudge her. She has a blank expression, but she gets the message and fakes a smile. We're both waving and smiling at the cameras. We both get onto the train and Adriana resumes ignoring the world. The victors, which I had ignored during the reaping, come in and greet us. There are 2 of them. Marie and Justin. Justin won a couple of years back, but Marie's been here since the 7th Hunger Games. What number will I be labeled if I win? 43rd Hunger Games Winner. Boy from District 6. What if I lose? I refuse to think with that mindset.

"You guys can choose who sponsors who." Justin says.

I wait like a gentleman for Adriana to say something, but she just stares off into space blankly.

"I'll go with you Justin." I say cautiously, but Adriana doesn't show any objection.

Justin escorts me into my room. "If you don't like the room, you can change the color scheme with this panel." Justin points with his hand to a box where a light switch should be in a normal room. "This also controls lighting, music, and just about anything else you can think of." I nod in understanding. "You will have a small lunch at around 3. Don't be late. Get on Porquia's good side and she'll make your life easier. Other than that you can do whatever you want."

Justin walks off. I am left in my room. I decide to experiment with the panel. It happens to come off the wall, and I walk around the room with it. There are 5 options on it. Colors, Lighting, Entertainment, Television, and Food. First I make the colors all shades of blue. Then I make the lighting really dim. I press television, and a hologram appears on the wall. I plop onto my bed and adjust the slope of the bed. I just missed the recaps of the reapings from District 1 and 2, but my television allows me to rewind. I watch the reapings and try to remember important details.

The tributes from 1 and 2 are both strong and good-looking. The tributes from District 3 are 13 and 14 years of age. District 4 has two older, slim but not strong tributes. District 5's don't stick out in my mind. I watch the reaping from our district. Adriana is your typical tribute, but I seem dorky the way I smile as I go up to the stage. I know I'm just looking for my imperfections, but I wonder how the audience interprets me. During District 7 and 8 my eyes glaze back down to the remote, and I find myself ordering something that won't fill me up. I'm biting into a roll that must be made of clouds when I find myself staring at the starving tributes from Districts 11 and 12. They always scared me, with their hollow eyes that now have Adriana's stare.

I walk around the train and wander off the the back of the train. I open the door and find a train car with a window that goes from roof to floor in every direction. I grab the remote from the wall and plop onto the plush couches located in this room, but in one of the other couches is Adriana. She doesn't have that same stare that I've now associated with her. In fact, I'm half-surprised when she speaks.

"Did you have a girlfriend Matt?" Adriana says in a whispery voice.

"Yeah." I say eating one of the cloud rolls.

She nods as if this actually explain something and then walks over to the glass. She touches it.

"Will you dance with me?" She asks stroking the glass.

Okay. Adriana just made this already awkward situation more awkward. But somehow I find myself agreeing. I turn on some music my mother used to play when danced with my father in the living room. My mother taught me how to dance, but I'm not that good.

We do a really slow dance at first. I'm about to ask her to stop, but the dancing seems to have loosened her up. We switch to a more fast dance and find ourselves laughing. Our happy moment is interrupted when Marie calls throughout the train that lunch is in ten minutes.

We both let go of each other, and Adriana walks away. Before she closes the door, she calls out something.

"Thank you." I think I can do this now.


	3. The Hysteria

I sit down next to Justin at the table. I was the last one to arrive, and Marie and Porquia are having a debate over what the arena will be this year.

"The Capitol's definitely not going to do one of those awful forests." Porquia says, dipping a stick of some grain into a chocolate fountain. Mother rented a chocolate fountain when my sister Sasha turned 19. Freedom from the Hunger Games certainly is cause for celebration.

"I'm thinking something with lots of water." Marie says dreamily. "With waterfalls and floods." Marie better choose a new guess, because I'm no swimmer.

I remember what Justin said about getting onto Porquia's good side. I think he's referring to that fact that she can make my life a living hell. I wonder how she can do that though. Scare my sponsors away? Take away my food privileges?

I sit down at the only empty chair left and say hello graciously to all of them. I'm tempted to use the name me use in our district for Porquia, Porky, but I fight it off. Now that I'm only six feet away from Porquia she does seem to look like a pig. Her nose isn't the right size or shape, and she has this distorted laugh that she does after every third or so sentence. When Porquia meets eyes with mine I can see that her eyes are a brilliant red with these small pink designs, and I am reminded of how she stared at me during the reaping. I use my best manners, and I reach across the table for something that resembles a steak. Not exactly sure what it is though. Whatever it is, it coated in a creamy sauce that accents the texture so well. I manage to join in on Marie's conversation, and eventually Justin joins in.

"Well, District 6, 7, and 8 have gotten new stylists this year." Porquia tells us. "I rather liked the stylist for 7 last year. He made this lovely paper dress for the lady. I think that's what got her sponsors."

I remember that District 7 had the winner last year. She didn't look very strong, but she could throw faster than I could follow her on television. District 7 has a rather lucky industry for the games, lumber and paper. District 6 just has scientific research, not like thats any use in the games. I bet I know more about chemical reactions than anyone, except perhaps District 3. They always have these small tributes who don't last very long. I think about my new stylist. Man or woman? Tattooed from head to toe?

"Well whoever it is, you two better be nice to them." Marie says pointing a utensil at me and Adriana. I don't like who she told us that like we were children, but I guess she knows more than us. And I guess we are children.

I wonder what it will be like when I get to the Capitol. I've seen the Capitol on television, but the tributes in the interviews always tell us television doesn't capture its beauty.

I finish my steak and grab for a roll. They have included rolls from each of the districts, like the crescent ones from District 11, or the one that almost breaks teeth from District 12. I examine the one from our district. An oval masterpiece with seeds meticulously arranged evenly over the surface. I pick off each seed individually and insert it onto a dish of half-finished pudding. I look up and see that Adriana is staring at the plucked roll. I excuse myself from the table and walk back to my room. I wander off to bed and Justin quickly reminds me to show up for dinner at 6.

I strip my clothes and walk into my personal shower. I press a button that says _Relax_ _Cycle 3 _and let the shower assault me with bubbles and hot water. I fall into my bed putting on some silk pajamas and program my room to wake me up at 5:59.

In my dream, the Careers are chasing after me. I don't have enough details to grasp where we are, just that water is rising up my ankles. The careers start hurling spears at me and I'm awkwardly slapping them away while splashing knee-deep in water. The careers finally start hitting me and I have five spears in me before they start chasing me. At this point the water is past my waist and now I'm paddling with my arms to escape the careers. As the water submerges me, the ground disintegrates, and then I'm sinking into the watery abyss.

I wake up a little past five o'clock in a sweaty hysteria. I stand up and get myself under control. _It's okay Matt, it was just a dream. There is no water. _I remind myself that Father did take our family to go swimming once. We went to Mayor Legrand's house and had some social outing with his family. One of his daughters taught me how to swim and I remember playing games and having fun.

I walk out to some cabin on the train and find myself in the observation room. I walk up to the glass and examine the outside. There are large mountains to my left and right. We must be in the far end of District 2, where the border meets up with the other districts. On the other end of District 2 is the mountains, and then over those mountains... The Capitol.


	4. The Chariots

Our train is encased in darkness as we pass through the mountains. We all sit at the dining table picking at our food. Then the darkness disappears, and I rush to the window. The Capitol is there in the distance, a city of shining beauty. The people in the interviews weren't lying when they gushed about its beauty, the way the colors make the colors reflect in an almost dream-like fashion. There's an ornate display of fireworks as we come towards the city and suddenly we reach the city.

The train passes through the streets and the people see me through the window. They all cheer and wave. There are banners in the city with all this Happy Hunger Games merchandise, shirts and tattoos. We pull up to a large, ornate building and the doors open. We are escorted by some Capitol attendants to a hall marked 6 and I am ushered into a door marked Boys. The moment I step in, three people assault me.

"Hello!" A lady pipes at me in that dreary Capitol accent. "My name's Porxel, and they are Mastell and Frayvus. Please come here and we will fix you up for the chariot!"

They usher me into a steamy room, remove my silk robe, and plunge me into a bath that must be filled with acid.

"It makes your pores loosen." Frayvus, a man with a Gothic-Capitol style tells me. His hair looks like an inverse Mohawk, with the hair that should run from his forehead to the back of his neck absent. The next hour consists of Mastell zapping me with this stick that he says will make my complexion photogenic.

"You're complexion shines, but it has a slight seaweed tinge to it." Mastell says, probing me in the face with that little electric pen of his. I find it ironic he thinks _my_ skin is a weird color when his doesn't look any better in a deep blue that makes him look frozen. I decide to make them love me so I decide to thank him.

"Thanks for thinking about my wellbeing." I say. _That sounds stupid_, but then again I'm complimenting them, so what does it matter?

"Oh thanks darling!" Porxel says in her voice. She's stirring something that resembles golden shaving cream with a large spoon. She brushes it onto my face so that it looks like I'm wearing a golden mask. Then she peels it off and disposes of it. She allows me to look in the mirror and when I look at my face, I seem to have a brilliant shine.

A door somewhere opens and a lady walks in. I like to think of her as a more conservative Capitol citizen. She doesn't have as many alterations as Proxel or Mastell, but she does have some. For instance, she left her hair the natural shade of dark brown it was, but her skin seems to be a little more white than any natural shade. Her eyes are a light brown, and I can't help staring at them.

"Much better!" She exclaims. "My name's Aurdrera." She shakes my hand, and I notice some beautiful designs are traced onto her pale skin up her arm. She's wearing a draping dress with brown and white colors. I notice just how colorless she is. The only color she seems to display is brown. Everything else is white or shades of black.

"How do you do Ardrayra." I say in a trance, although I mumble her name and pronounce it wrong.

"It's Aurdrera. Arr-drair-ra." She says, annunciating each syllable.

"So what's my chariot costume?" I ask, breaking out of my trance.

"Oh, I think it's rather nice." She says thoughtfully. "Let me look at your figure."

I remove the silk robe I was allowed to wear while my prep team worked on my face. She walks around me in a circle.

"Well, I guess the costume will look absolutely dashing on you." She promises.

"What is it?" I say. I realize I must sound annoying, asking that silly question over and over.

"District 6's industry is scientific development. Am I right?" She inquires.

"Yeah." I confirm.

"Me and Lauriel, your partner's stylist, have decided to focus on the muttation part." Aurdrera says mysteriously.

_I'm going to be a werewolf, _I think.

"Lauriel and I had a big debate over what it should be and we've decided to separate ones for each of you. You're going to be a tiger, and Adriana's going to be some other hybrid. How do you like that?"

I neither like it nor despise it. I guess its just a little hard to feel thankful when this is when the sponsors will start picking tributes out. So I make the best of it and thank her. Its better than what our previous stylist did every year. A stupid lab coat and goggles.

She prepares me for my transformation. I get to wear some pants, but I'm going to be shirtless. Now I'm thankful I have a lean figure. but I wonder how she's going to give me fur. Aurdrera comes up with a bucket of some silver shaving cream and starts coating my entire back and arms. When the cream dissolves hair starts to grow. I know I should be horrified, but instead I'm curious. The hair is a nice, soft brown that matched my hair. Aurdrera paints my chest a whiter shade, and continues my transformation. Fake nails, fake eye color, fake ears. By the time she's done, I have to say I actually look pretty sick. The makeup she put on accents my muscles making me look much more ripped.

I thank her graciously and go to the chariots. I'm one of last ones there, and Adriana is waiting in the chariot. She's standing there with her blank expression while someone from District 7 chats with her. I go up to the chariot and the girl form District 7. If I knew Adriana at all I might have asked Adriana what the girl had wanted, but instead I take a moment to look at Adriana's costume. She seems to be some type of bird, with feathers and wings. Adriana notices my confusion and tells me that its a swan. I nod. What does a swan have to do with mutts? But then again, I don't think the average Capitol citizen knows what a mutt is, let alone District 6's industry. All that matters is that it makes Adriana look beautiful.

The anthem starts and the chariots start rolling out. Districts 1, 2 and 3 roll out of the building and people automatically applaud them. Well, they applaud 1 and 2. District 3 usually gets overshadowed by the strong careers. Then after a small pause, the next three start rolling. I guess we're about on par with District 4. District 5 has small, silent careers. I would nudge Adriana, but she already knows she has to wave. I know that watching a fierce tiger wave like a little child won't get me sponsors.

"Matt!" Someone calls, and I get thrown a blue rose. I don't make an attempt to catch it. I'm not the only person who's getting cheered. Adriana and District 4 get plenty of cheers and flowers. I guess District 6 is in the top 5 districts this year. I turn around to see the other tributes. 10, 11 and 12 have the stereotypic costumes that they always have. District 10 has its ranch clothes. 11 has the overalls. 12 has the miner's getup.

There are so many sounds assaulting my ears now that its hard to tell if someone applauds me. I look over and see that we've almost reached the Training Center. We exit our chariot, and walk into the Training Center. Aurdrera promises me I was wonderful, but I'm not listening to anyone. I'm tired, and I want to go to sleep. Aurdrera hands me a bottle and tells me it will get rid of the hair. I nod to let her know that I understand, and walk up to my room. Justin stops me and tells me to meet in the Dining Room in about an hour. _Can't you guys see I want to go to bed? _I nod and walk to the elevator. None of the tributes walk into my elevator, in fact 4 cram into the other one to avoid me. The only one who enters is one of the Careers, but I can't tell which one.

"Why hello there." He says.

I look him straight in the eye to show I don't feel below him. "Hey."

"Pretty sweet costume." He says. He presses the number 1, and the elevator speeds up a couple levels. What are the extra levels for? I guess they need four stories to keep the one floor powering. I have hard in the interviews about the rooms and the showers.

"My name's Flicker." He says.

"My name's Matt." I answer in response.

"Hmm... Matt. District 6. How about you eat lunch with us?" He asks.

"Sure, I don't see why not." I say, hiding my gratitude.

I press the number 6 and enter onto my floor. I go to my bed and flop down on it. I close my eyes, and think about the next few days to come.

I wake up, and realize I'm still in my costume and walk over to the shower. I walk into the shower with the bottle Aurdrera gave me. It says INSERT IN SOAP SLOT in handwriting that must be Aurdrera's. I slip it into a tube and it disappears. I also find a drawer that has many different scents of shampoo and conditioner. I choose _Fresh _and the shower scrubs my body. The hair effortlessly falls off when the bubbles spread. I step out of the shower onto a mat that sends a current that dries my body. I program the machine to do my hair as I usually do it. I step into my room, and find a replica of the silk robe that I've grown attached to and slip it on. I walk down to the dining hall and find everyone seated.

"You're late." Justin calls out without looking at me.

"What'd I miss?" I inquire.

"The recap of the ceremony." Marie answers.

"Oh, I saw it on my television." I quickly lie.

"Good, so what are you going to do in training?" Justin asks.

I wonder if I should tell them about Flicker. I think it would be the best choice. "Flicker invited me to eat with him and the other careers." I say cautiously.

"Flicker?" Justin asks.

"The boy from District 1." I answer.

"It's settled then. They're guessing you're a semi-career. Are you good with any weapons?" Justin

"Not really... Although I can throw knives pretty well." I answer. Me and my friend Felix used to practice when we were 11 while his mom wasn't looking. It might have been desperation in the fact that we were both eligible for the next Hunger Games, and we got rather good.

"Good. Show them that during training." Justin instructs.

"Okay, anything else you wanted?" I ask.

"Don't show fear. Act confident. Play an angle in front of them. That's about it." Justin says. He stands up. "Good luck."


	5. The Careers

Me and Adriana walk out to the elevator. She pushes the button, and we descend.

"So you're with the Careers." She says randomly.

"Yeah, I guess." I answer.

The doors open and we walk out. We're almost the last to arrive. I walk over to the Careers and Flicker introduces me.

"This is Matt." Flicker tells everyone.

"Hey." The girl from District 2 says. No one else speaks. I think it best not to answer.

"I'm Celebra." The girl from District 2 says, and pauses in case anybody else cares to introduce themselves. No one does, so Celebra continues.

"This is Blaze." She points to the boy from District 2.

"I can introduce myself!" Blaze suddenly spouts.

"Then why didn't you?" Celebra retorts.

"I didn't need to!" Blaze says, taking a step towards Celebra.

"Whatever." Celebra, says pretending to ignore Blaze. "That's Furtia." She points to the girl from District 1, who didn't react to Blaze's outrage at all.

"I'm Resperi." The girl from District 4 finally says.

"I'm Eventus." The boy from District 4 also relents.

"Where do you guys want to start?" Flicker asks.

"Weightlifting." Blaze immediately says. I know he wants to see if I'm worth the extra effort.

Before we can start though, we have to listen to this guy talk about what we can and can't do, most of the rules leading back to don't kill each other. Yet.

We move to the weightlifting station and Flicker "lets" me go first. He subjects me to a couple tests that I know I've passed. I can lift more than Eventus, which makes me feel like I actually am a Career. I can tell Flicker is impressed, but Blaze refuses to acknowledge my skill. Celebra gets bored of weights, and says we should move onto weapons.

With ease, Resperi and Flicker can bullseye a dummy in the head with a spear. Blaze is skilled with a sword and can pin me to the ground every time I try to use an opening. I impress the other's by hitting the center circle in the bullseye twice in a row with the knives they provide. Furtia, who is also skilled with knives, shows me how to run and throw, which is much harder than it sounds. We eat lunch together, and I must admit they're not that bad to hang around. Except for Blaze, I'm sure I'll never get him to trust me. Like I care, I don't exactly trust any of them. Except maybe Flicker, who's been somewhat decent to me. We continue through the stations until its time to go back to our rooms.

"I guess we'll see you tomorrow." Celebra tells me as she exits the elevator onto her floor.

"Yeah, I'll see you then." I answer. When the elevator reaches my floor, everybody is already seated at the dining table and talking. Justin calls me to sit down, so I sit in the only empty chair.

"You realize nobody in the districts is going to like you being with the Careers." Justin tells me knowingly.

"Yeah, I know that." I answer.

"So are you going to go through with it? Or are you just going to use them to get the Cornucopia's goods and ditch them?" Justin inquires.

"I don't know if I even want any involvement with them during the games." I tell him.

"Then how are you going to tell them that?" Justin asks.

"I told you I don't even know if I'm going to do that!" Suddenly angry for no reason. Everybody else who was "talking" at the table is now silent and listening to my decision.

"You've got to make a decision fast if you're going to stray from the Careers." Justin warns me.

"I'll tell you my plan in the morning. Then you can help me through with it." I compromise.

"That sounds good. Now, I'm not going to tell you your choice. But I am warning you that what you choose better be what your mind and heart tell you." Justin advises.

"Yeah, whatever." I say walking away from the table to my room. When I get to my room, I don't even think about it, just take off the training clothes which I think Aurdrera designed more to reveal my muscles then improve my training. I don't even put on proper pajamas, just go to sleep in my underwear and hope my dreams will help me come to a decision. _Why don't you just stay with the Careers you dummy?_ I don't know why I'm still debating it in my mind. _Dummy! Dummy! Dummy!_ My mind attacks every decision I come up with. Instead of making a decision, I just drift into sleep.


	6. The Training

A knock on my door wakes me and I jump out of bed. I look for my silk robe, and find it on the floor in the bathroom. I slip it on and walk out for breakfast. This must be the first time I haven't been late because only Marie sits at the table stirring a tall glass filled with a vanilla milkshake.

"So have you made your decision?" Marie asks.

"You're not my mentor." I tell her getting a plate and piling it with sausage.

"Might as well be." She answers. "I was the first winner for District 6, so I mentored your mentor. Doesn't that give me some superiority?" I know she's joking, but I decide to continue the conversation for the sake of not talking about my "decision" or anything of the sort.

"How was it with no mentor?" I ask.

"Oh, I was in the Hunger Games when it was just starting. The Hunger Games weren't as much of a festivity as they are in the Capitol, but I remind you there were limited victors. The Hunger Games were in a testing phase for those first few years with alterations to make it more interesting."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"The first Hunger Games, they didn't even have weapons. Just chucked them in a closed space and prodded them with a big stick until they started fighting. There weren't any Careers when I was in the Games."

"What? There's always Careers!" I say ridiculously.

"For about fifteen years after The Dark Days _all_ the districts were in poverty. They had bet everything they had on the wars and they lost. Rather sad." She says dipping some of her milkshake into her mouth. It's weird hearing about the things the Capitol would never tell us. "The districts that were closest to the Capitol eventually got the better industries and more wealth. Need I even mention those three districts? For the 7th Hunger Games, they realized that training the tributes to kill might actually make them kill better."

"Hmm." I say. I don't know why she's telling me about this. I would ask more questions, but just then Adriana and everybody else decides to eat breakfast and Justin asks me about the Careers.

"So are you staying with them or are you leaving with them?" Justin asks, crumbling a strip of bacon into a bowl of perfectly white grain.

"I am going to practice with them for one more day." I say. "I don't really know what I want to do yet." I know Justin is not happy that I haven't made any conclusions over the night but he agrees.

Adriana steps into the elevator before I do and I step in after her. We don't talk, but when the door opens she waits for me to leave first. This time we're early. The only tributes here are the ones from District 1. I walk over and greet Flicker.

"Where do you think we should start today?" He asks me.

"Lets do edible plants and then snares." I answer.

"That sounds good." He tells me. It's just then that I notice something.

The Careers are always agreeing with me, as if they actually want me to join them. But they rarely do that to each other. Blaze and Celebra rarely agree on anything, in fact they're always fighting. Resperi and Eventus don't often talk, but they often glare at Flicker if he says something stupid. Furtia is aggressive, but I guess she just wants to feel superior. It then hits me like a ton of bricks. _They're using me._

That would explain it. The Careers must have seen that I was strong and a threat to them during the Games. So they enlist me as an ally, and gush me until I agree wholeheartedly. I can see each of their attitudes coming into this. Blaze didn't like this idea, so he openly warns me not to try to befriend him, although he doesn't say it out loud. Flicker must be the leader in this group, because he's been the functioning one in the plan. District 4 doesn't seem to care. Celebra reminds me of Julia, the way she makes me feel loved and adored, but at least with Julia I can tell its sincere. Celebra oozes out distrust and lies, with her eyes that are as cold as a snake's.

I know that they're planning a way to kill me once we're in the Games. But what am I supposed to about it? I guess I'll stick with them for today until I find a way to ditch them. No matter how I do it, it's bound to be harsh and they'll treat me coldly. That mask Flicker put on to befriend me will disintegrate into flames once I show my colors. I might get a few colors myself if they beat me up, although thats illegal.

The rest of the tributes have started to arrive, and I know I must stick with them for the morning. I can't last through a whole day of them staring at me. We proceed to make a few snares, and Resperi shows that he can move a rope into complicated knots faster than I can comprehend. As I try to make a snare that will keep the prey hanging off the ground, I wonder when I should ditch them. _During lunch will be the best._

We all make an attempt at archery, although the only one who has skill is Celebra. She can't hit the bulls-eye though. We then try camouflage until lunch. As I dish myself food I grow nervous. _Okay, maybe you can ditch the plan and wait until Justin gives you advice_. No, I tell myself. It has to be now. If I don't do it now, then I won't get the chance later.

Resperi is telling a story explaining how he got attacked by a shark and received a scar on his leg. I wait until the end of the story for an oppurtunity to speak, but Flicker is determined to not let me speak.

"Can I see your scar Reperi?" He asks.

"Sure thing." He lifts up his shorts and a wicked scar is revealed extending from his upper thigh down to his mid leg.

"Pretty sweet scar." Flicker says. I turn around to look at Blaze for a split second to see he is staring at me. _Now's your chance. _I tell myself.

"Will you stop staring at me?" I yell at Blaze. He takes this with surprise and scoots back in his seat from slight shock. Once he's regained his composure he answers.

"I'm not doing anything!" Blaze yells back. I know Blaze is the best to pick a fight with because he will argue back no matter what I say and will also exceed my voice level in competition.

"You're staring at me like I'm an idiot!" I yell louder.

"Well, maybe you are an idiot!" He yells, standing up from his chair.

"Well, maybe I don't want to be an ally with someone like you!" I yell, standing up also and struggling to stay louder than his voice.

"Maybe I don't want you either!" He says.

"Then I'm outta here!" I say, grabbing my food and marching away.

"Then go. Does that make you a coward then? Huh?" He shouts after me. Instead of answering, like an idiot who wanted a fight with blood to occur would, I take a moment to stare at the other tributes. I sit next to Adriana, partly because I refuse to sit alone, and also because she's in the table farthest away. Its quiet for a couple seconds and then everybody continues eating. I turn around for a moment to see that Celebra's eyes are trained on me. I stare back at her until she looks away. _I win,_ I think smugly.


	7. The Preperations

Adriana tries not to look at me during lunch, but I catch her doing it often. She stands up to throw out her food, leaving me to pick at my food by myself. _Well, you did it. _Yeah, and what exactly did I accomplish? _At least they don't have to pretend to be nice around you anymore._ Pfft, because that's _so _much better.

I decide to focus on something I can show during my private session. Something that will impress the judges and give me a hopefully high number. I decide I'm going to focus on a snare, because that will be beneficial during my private session. I ask the trainer if he knows any knots that are flashy and will impress the judges. He tells me one, but it will take time. I risk two hours attempting to do it, but to no avail. After another twenty minutes, I finally get it. He beams at me. At grabs one of the victim's feet and lifts them into the ground. I decide that's what I will do for the private session.

Before we have to leave, I spend time learning to make fires and fishhooks. I catch Celebra's eye once more. She's handling a knife, and she pretends to throw it at me. I know she expects me to flinch, but I stand my ground. I blow a kiss at her and she looks away in disgust. At least she's not looking at me anymore.

When its time to go I tell Adriana to tell Justin what I did, and go straight to bed. I think about the private sessions tomorrow, and decide I need to work on my throwing. I stay up another hour throwing knives at a picture of a bouquet of flowers. I aim for one of the more prominent lilacs that stick out of the vase, and quietly thank my childhood friend for suggesting we throw knives that one day.

Its one of the servants who wakes me up. I know he'd feel embarrassed if he knew that he woke me up, so I pretend to continue sleeping. I open my eyes partway to see what he's doing. He replaces the picture that I stabbed with a new one and picks up garbage off the floor. Then he leaves a bouquet of something on the dresser and silently leaves.

Once I'm sure he's gone, I walk over to the bouquet. There's a note with it, and I open it up and read it. _Thanks for sitting with me. -Adriana_ I'm confused. Am I not a tribute? I start to wonder if Adriana has some mentality, because I would never in a thousand years make an attempt to get close to a tribute. I throw away the note in confusion. The bouquet is filled with those bread rolls that seem to be made out of clouds. She must've seen on the train that I ate them a lot. I pick at one of them angrily. I look at the clock on my wall and see that it's only 6:30. I walk out of my room to the dining table, where Marie is sitting. _Does she even go to sleep? _I sit in the table next to her picking at my roll. She has a milkshake similar in style to the one I saw her with last, except this one has bits if creamy chocolate stirred into it.

"Where'd you get that?" I ask her, suddenly wanting a milkshake of my own.

"You can make your own in the kitchen." She tells me, pointing over to a machine in the kitchen. I walk over to it. There is a touch screen with so many options, I just pick one of the most simple ones. Vanilla. Caramel topping. Chocolate toping. Dispense. A cup flies down a tube into my hand. A spoon is soon to follow. I go to the dining table next to her and start eating.

"Why up so early?" Marie questions.

"Got woken up. Why are you up?" I ask back.

"I always wake up this early." She answers. "Did you get the bread?"

I lift up the picked at roll in answer. I'm surprised she knows about it.

"Adriana asked me to deliver it. So I just got an Avox to do it."

I want to know what an Avox is, but I don't ask. Instead I turn to Adriana. "Why did she give me the basket?" I request.

"What? What do you mean?" Marie asks, confused at my confusion. "You mean you haven't noticed?"

"Noticed what?" I ask cautiously. I don't want Marie to tell me Adriana has a crush on me or anything of that sort.

"Adriana has a... What should I call it? A handicap..." She says slowly, picking her words carefully. "She has a mental handicap, she doesn't see the same way you do. She's not exactly with us part of the time if you know what I mean."

I know exactly what she means. She can't think clearly. She's mentally retarted. I hate the Capitol for doing this to her. I see it hurting Adriana's family more than Adriana. How would it be to watch a child leave your arms, knowing that she's doesn't even realize what the Games are. I don't think Adriana has said more than 5 sentences in front of me. She must have grown attached to Marie. No wonder Adriana spent most of her time in training on camouflage and campfires. I bang my hand on the table in anger. _It's impossible for her to win._

"What are you going to do?" I ask Marie.

"I know that it's hopeless." Marie says softly. "The most I can do is tell her what to do with small words. I know she's not up for the bloodbath. The most I can do is tell her to run when she hears the gong."

I hate the Capitol for this. In fact, I could organize a rebellion right now if I could leave this building. How cruel is it to send a girl who doesn't even know what death is into the arena? I bet she doesn't even know how to get food. I catch myself before I submerge myself too deep. _There's nothing you can do Matt. Just let her go. There's nothing you can do. Nothing you can do. Nothing. _I look back up at my milkshake. I'm really not in the mood to eat it anymore.

"So, what are you going to do for the private session?" She says.

"I'm going to show them a snare, and then throw some knives." I answer.

"Are you any good?" She asks.

"Yeah, I guess." I say dumbly.

She nods and then looks off to the left. She flick some of the chocolate off her spoon onto a wall. "Hit it." She instructs. I grab a sharp knife out of the basket of silverware, and throw it at the brown smudge. It pierces the spot, making some of the chocolate splatter for added effect. I turn to look at her.

"I say you'll get at least a 6." She calculates.

"6?" I ask, more harshly than I has intended.

"Well, you're not a Career, so that's definitely going to take some points off. Even if you are good, they're not going to pay much attention unless you catch their gaze." She says waving her spoon like a pendulum.

"That's not fair." I say grimly, although I probably sound around five years old.

"Hmph. Count yourself lucky you're not District 11 or 12." She says, standing up and putting her empty cup into an empty box meant for dirty dishes.

I sit grimly at the table until everybody else shows up. Porquia comes up in a shirt that she says reeks of good luck. I think it reeks of too much perfume. Now that Marie has mentioned it, Adriana does seem a little off. She sorts through the toast until she's found one with a peculiar burn, and then slathers butter on it like a toddler. I can't help but feel a twinge of guilt. I wish I could have been nice to her when I was back home, let her hang out with us. She was probably lonely, sitting in the corner, sitting alone at lunch. Now I understand why she felt so loved when I sat next to her during training. I wish I could team up with her in the Arena, but I know she'll be only a hindrance. Instead I attack some bacon, and fill myself to carrying capacity with rolls. I make sure to let her see that I got her rolls and am enjoying them. I also realize, that it doesn't fit all the way. It would explain the blank expressions and the bread, but what about the dancing. She danced well, and she spoke. Maybe her mother put Adriana in dancing, and that's Adriana's creativity outlet. _But she's spoken to you normally before._ I brush it off. It doesn't matter.

"Time to go." Justin says. We all say goodbye, and adjourn to the elevator. When I'm alone with Adriana in the elevator, I decide I have to do something.

"Thanks for the rolls." I say awkwardly.

She smiles graciously at me. The elevator doors open and the next few moments drift into one memory. When I come back to reality, they're calling Flicker for his practice session. I turn to Adriana.

"What are you doing for the practice session?" I ask.

"Bow." She answers. Does she even know how to fire one? Doesn't matter, I can't get concerned about her.

I wait for what seems to be an eternity until they call the girl from District 5 in. I sit up, knowing that my turn is approaching. When they finally call me in, I realize just how tough it will be. The Gamemakers have only ten or so tributes, but I guess some of them dozed off after the Careers all went.

_ So that's what Marie meant._ They don't expect us other tributes to be any good. I get started on my trap. I go to the fake tree the snare section has, and start on the complicated knot. I finish it, and get the dummy ready. _This has to be flashy_. I tell myself. I throw the dummy in. The dummy springs on and the trap and is pulled up by the arm. _The Gamemakers get the idea. _I throw a couple knives into its vital points from a ways away, and some of the Gamemakers seem impressed. They dismiss me and I leave.

Eh, wasn't that bad. I guess I'll get a 6 or a 7, like Marie said. It wasn't spectacular enough to get me a ten or an eleven, no no no. I'm not setting myself up for disappointment. The very most it could be is 9. Even that is slim. I think about it. _If I was a Career, then they would have given me a higher number._ Wait a second, I was a Career. The Gamemakers saw me at the stations with the Careers. I pray that they didn't seem me ditch them or go to stations without them.

I take a short nap on the couch in the television room until its time to reveal the scores. Flicker got a 8. The rest of the Careers scored in the eight to ten range, with the exception of Celebra, who got a seven. Oh, and Blaze got an eleven. Twelve is essentially unattainable. District 3 both got fives. Then they're showing District 5, and I sit up in my seat. The boy from five gets a four. The girl gets a six. Then they show my face. My face looks more confident than I think I've ever seen it.

_ Did they edit it? _I wonder. I can definitely see them making the Careers look more powerful. I am so busy wondering about it that I forget to look at my number. I pin my eyes down just in time to see the number in bold white print...

Nine! Everybody applauds, and then they show Adriana. Eight. How did she do that? She said she was doing archery... I ignore my nine for a moment and congratulate Adriana. She deserves it. _Don't get attached._ I warn myself. Yeah, but if I don't, then I won't be able to forgive myself when I go into the Arena and see her face in the sky. I barely pay attention to the other tributes. Doesn't matter. The highest number was an eight by the boy from District 12.

Wait.

I look back at the boy from District 12. He's seventeen or eighteen, and muscled. How could I have not noticed him from training? I look at the girl from District 12 to see if I've missed anything else. She gets a four, and I lean back in my seat. Forget about the Careers. Forget about the boy. The Games aren't for another three days. We've still got the interviews. I'll just pull out a bucket of ego and call it good. I wonder what we do with the extra day before the interviews. But I soon figure out.

I get Porquia first. She has me for a couple of hours. I know what she's going to do. I can just see her whacking me with a stick and piping random orders. "Back straight!" "Shoulders up!" "Tighten your jaw!" Instead of that she says that I need to find an angle. I decide on charming. She purses her lips.

"I guess we can try that." She says thoughtfully.

"She shows me some expressions, and says I'll need to use at least one of them for every sentence. I begrudgingly accept. One of them has me smiling like a serial killer, but she assures me that I don't look bloodthirsty. Another one makes me feel too much like a lady. When I refuse to close one of my eyes, she slaps me in the face. Ouch.

She doesn't even act like it happened and continues. I rub my cheek, and she orders me to do the expression again. This time I do it, and she says it looks too girly. Anger fumes inside of me.

"I was just kidding about it looking girly." She says.

"Wait, what?" I say, the anger condensing into confusion.

"I'm teaching you to bottle up your anger. Sometime you have to say a lie, even if its not close to what your mind is telling you." She says. Its weird watching her talk about anger when her skin is deep red and she looks fuming. "For example, even though you wanted to say, 'But I wasn't doing because it wasn't too girly in the first place!', with some profanity added, you would be saying, 'Oh, you're absolutely right Porquia!" See the difference. The slap was meant to unhinge you. Sorry about that."

I wish I could say the exercise was useless, but it did drill it into my mind. We continue on, her showing me how to walk without looking like a sloth. After a while, she says I'm good.

Now for Justin But when I enter the room to begin my next session, it's Marie. I sit down in the chair.

"Did you decide an angle?" She asks.

"Yeah." I mumble.

"Care to tell?" She inquires.

"Charming." I say.

"Good. I'm sorry that Justin isn't going to do this with you. He's horrible at this sort of stuff." She explains. I nod understandingly.

"Okay, since you're going to be charming, I think you should do a rehearsal with me. Let's begin. I'm Ceaser, you're the charming tribute. Hey Matt!" She says with enthusiasm.

I use the face Porquia taught me. "Hey Ceaser!"

"So, what's been your favorite thing in the Capitol so far?" She asks.

"Umm... The people." I say. _Bullcrap. _

"That's good enough." Marie says. "I think you're going to be fine. Just remember he's obligated to ask about your brother Tanner."

"Okay. I know what I'll say." I answer.

_ Bring it on, Ceaser._


	8. The City

I find myself weightless as I am pulled into the arena. I am encased in a cold darkness for ten seconds. I suddenly pull myself awake, telling myself that these first few minutes in the games will be some of the most important. My mind has barely five seconds to pull some incomplete thoughts together before I am greeted by the light. The only thing I can see is a blaring sunset before a booming voice calls "Let the 43rd Hunger Games begin!"

Looking around at the arena, I feel small and insignificant. My other twenty three tributes looked as shocked as I do. I'm not going to lie when I say I was expecting a forest or a desert.

Instead they have chosen a city. Yes, a city. Skyscrapers shoot into the sky in all directions. Me and my fellow tributes are located an a very broad street. The street isn't the right size, its unusually broad, with ten lanes running in an endless line into the distance left and right. The cornucopia sits smack-dab in the middle with all sorts of weapons and food spilling out. The gong rings out, and I realize that I need to decide where I am going fast.

I run/lunge to the left, where I run down the street. A tribute is sprinting in front of me, but noticing my presence he dashes off to the left. I cut onto a sidewalk leading onto one of the many skyscrapers to my right. As I'm running, I pick up as many details as I can. We came into this arena in the late afternoon, meaning we have little time to establish a location before night.

The cannons start blaring into the sky, and I mentally count them in my head.

_One, two..._

It goes on and on until we reach the magic number of...

_Seven._

Seven? Is that an all-time low? I'm about to get angry at my tributes for running away from the fight until I realize I am one of those tributes who sprinted. Am I a coward then? _No, it means you had the sense to not run into the Cornucopia with your hands in the air._

Just then, a bright light shoots above me, scaring me literally to the ground. I realize that it was just a streetlight that turns on automatically. I guess I haven't really seen a streetlight until I came to the Capitol. Maybe its just culture shock. I take a moment to regain my breath. I look in all directions to make sure I am not being pursued. Then I cautiously stand up, and see that it is now very dark.

It is eerily quiet, and I tell myself it is now to time to find somewhere to go to sleep. The voice in my head will tell the truth though:_ Now it's time to find a good hiding place and stay up all night until the Careers come pick you off._ I'm not going to lie to myself, I'm pretty sure that I'm not going to get any sleep tonight. I think back to the stoplight, and how stupid it was that I ended up on the ground in almost-fetal-position. If that streetlight was a career with a weapon, I'd be dead now. How stupid that would look to my family on television. Television. They better not have showed that on television. Then I would be guaranteed no sponsors. Then again, I didn't have any in the first place.

I decide the best course of action would be to go into one of the many buildings and find a place with lots of exits. Then I can sneak out in case the Gamemakers or my fellow tribute tries to do something fatal. Top floor would definitely not be the best place because although the buildings look safe enough, I don't want to sit up in the top floor waiting for the building to topple over. I am about to enter one of the buildings when the anthem blares above me. I look up in the sky to see who I won't be seeing for a long time. Or maybe I'll see them in the afterlife.

The first face is the boy from District 3. Then the girl from District 5. Both from District 7. The girl from District 8. The boy from District 11. Then the girl from District 12. The seals comes back with another musical finale and then the silence settles in.

I find myself staring at the spot where the faces had appeared until I get goosebumps. The outfit we had gotten for the games consists of a jacket made of some material to reflect the heat, and a matching pair of pants. The entire set is a coal black. I am surprised to see that they have sewn in the district number on to our shoulders in a gray color. I have a staring contest with the number 6 on my shoulder until I realize I have been standing out here for what must've been 10 minutes. I look at the building I was about to enter with new knowledge.

I recognize this building as a restaurant, like the ones I saw in the Capitol. I run into the spacious room and look around. What looks to me like 20 tables with 4 chairs to each table scatter the room. There is a long counter at the front with a neon menu offering food for more money than I will ever get. That is, unless I win.

I enter the room behind the counter. There is a high-tech microwave and fridge, but no food. Well, this is the Hunger Games. I decide to leave the empty restaurant, and continue walking away from the Cornucopia. I realize something is wrong the moment I have taken ten steps from the restaurant. I am being followed, and I am certain it is not a tribute.


	9. The Mutt

My mind races although my feet continue moving.

_What is it?_ My mind asks. I think long and hard. It's quiet, agile, and keeps to the shadows. It has got to be one the Capitol's muttations. I should know all about muttations, being District 6 and all, but I find my mind blank. I establish what we've learned in school about muttations. Muttations are deadly because they have got excelled senses and abilites. My muttation has got to be both quick and fast to have followed without my notice this long. I know at least one thing for certain.

If I show any sense or recognition now, it will attack. I look casually on the ground I am sitting on. I am on a sidewalk. _Ok, that's good Matt._ To my left is lush grass, and to my right is more road. On the other side of the road is a building which looks as empty as the one I last went in. I look ahead, hoping for something helpful. My eyes squint as I look up ahead. Wait a second, that's a forest. A forest? What is this arena? Has it gotten multiple sections? A forest in one section, a city in another? Maybe there's a lake, and I can-

I hear the scream and whip my head in the direction it came. It was a girls voice, that's for certain. Was the wound fatal?

_Boom! _The cannon eerily replies. I wonder if it was my district partner, Adriana. Whoever it was, they were probably a victim of the careers. I count on my fingers who is left. All the careers. The girl from District 3. The boy from District 5. Both from 6. The boy from 8. Both from 9 and 10. Girl from 11. The boy from 12. I make a bet it was someone from 8 or 9. Suddenly I hear the sound of an explosion and see a orange-yellow light a couple miles behind me.

_Boom! Boom! Boom!_

I'm frozen in place. Four deaths in two minutes. The odds that one of those deaths was Adriana has gotten suddenly higher.

While I gazed at the explosion behind me, I also spied on my little mutt friend. I saw him standing in the shadows. He looks to me like a jaguar, but there was something else about him. Something that makes me not want to confront him. I've decided I'm going to run into a building and lock the door behind me. That sounds good. I've been outside walking so long I've practically been a sitting duck. I see a strong door a couple yards in front of me and think. _It's now or never Matt._ I sprint towards the door and the mutt dashes in response. I've reached the door and deduce I have more than enough time to get in when it hits me.

The door is locked.

Panic attacks my limbs and mind, and suddenly my mind takes on fight or flight. I dash for the forest, desperately hoping I can scramble up a tree before the mutt reaches me. I feel the mutt gain on me, when the arrow enters my range of vision, I awkwardly side step but the arrows not coming for me, its aiming for the mutt. The arrow hits the mutt directly in the eye, and sends it tumbling to the ground, but not before it plows its claws into my side. I don't stop moving though, and enter the forest.

The ground makes a sloppy transition from road to dirt and suddenly I collapse from exhaustion. I didn't get any sleep last night, and I must've been moving into the morning. My body makes contact with the ground and I manage to turn over to keep the dirt out of my eyes. The blood start to seep into the dirt and I make some unconnected thought like _That's gonna get infected if you don't wrap it up. _My eyes begin to close and the last thing I see is a fly buzz over me.


	10. The Ally

My eyes open. I begin to rise, but my side feels like its about to burst so I lie back down. I look around with my eyes and see trees and grasses. I look at my side. Its caked in mud and blood, and hurts beyond belief. I look past the trees and see the dirt path that runs into the road. Yes, I see it. A little mass of blood, but not enough to kill anyone I suppose. I see a trail of smeared blood connecting me to it and make the connection. Last night, somebody saved me, but didn't want to ally with me. They just dragged me out of the middle of the road and ran away.

Huh. I wonder who it was. My first and only reasonable guess is Adriana. It wasn't the careers, but it could have been anybody else.

I pull up my dirty shirt and look at the wound. What am I complaining about? It wasn't enough to kill me, in fact I doubt the guy even grazed me. I guess part of the mutt was to make wounds hurt more.

I stand up and trudge towards the city. I enter one of the buildings and find it must be some sort of office. I go into the bathroom and turn on the light. Just as I thought, all the electricity in the city works. I go to the faucet and see that it too works. I wash my wound and look for some bandages. No luck. I go back into the bathroom and decide that its worth it to risk a quick shower. As I scrape the dirty mud off my body, I wonder about how weird these games are. Running water and electricity. A rarity like this isn't going to last long. I dry myself with my jacket and then put on my clothes.

I sneak out of the office, to hear another scream. This time its a boy's. And it was really close. It was closer into the heart of the city. I know that the right decision is to run away, but I find myself sneaking towards the site. I hide behind a building and look at the events unfold.

The one that the scream came from was the boy from District 9. He has a spear lodged into his chest and there are three careers smiling and staring at him. The careers are the boys from District 1, 2 and 4. The victim of the careers starts to crawl away but the boy from 2 runs up and pulls the spear of him, and the cannon goes off. I know that if half the careers are here, the rest can't be that far away. Now is the time to go.

I start to run, but the girl from District 3 is standing behind me.

"Don't go this way!" She harshly whispers. "The other careers are coming from that direction!"

I don't have time to be confused because then she bolts away.

"Follow me!" She beckons.

I really don't know which way I should go, but she seems as if she's telling the truth. The sun has begun to make its way down to the horizon as I follow the mysterious girl from District 3. I vaguely wonder if its a trap, but realize she needs me more than I need her. And I am not much of a threat. Being weaponless and hungry, I find it the best choice to follow her. She brings me to a small alley. She points down and nods. I run up to her and start blurting questions.

"Why do you want me as an ally?" I ask.

"I never said I wanted an ally! By the way my name's Chrissy. I already know your name's Mark." She says.

"My name's not Mark! It's Matt!" I yell.

"Whatever. I don't want to ally with you, but I need you for something and we can both benefit." She explains.

I think about it for a second. I know I have to help her with whatever it is. "Fine. What is it that you want?

"Well," she explains, "we're going to destroy the Cornucopia."

Me and Chrissy are camped in the space between two air vents. She tells me that there is a quick getaway from this location, but she refuses to tell me where it is.

"I'll explain what happened with the explosion." Chrissy tells me. "I had been allied with the girl from District 9, and we had a plan to kill the careers. We had used the electricity from one of the buildings to create a small explosion. We had set up the explosion by the career's campsite, but we we did it too close and she got killed. I was hidden nearby when she died, and set up the explosion I managed to kill the girls from 1 and 2. The others got away."

I find it funny that she considers killing two careers out of six a failure. I think about the deaths and remember a detail about that hour.

"Wait. There were three cannons after the explosion." I remember.

"Hmm? Oh, the Girl from 10 got caught in the explosion." Chrissy says.

I remember her training score. Was it 9. I guess the Careers were using her like they were going to use me. "So what's the plan Chrissy?"

"We're setting up an explosion by the Cornucopia." Chrissy says with a grin.

I wonder about it. "Why did you choose me?"

"You're the only non-career I've met in a while." She explains.

"But Chrissy..." I start.

"What? Is my plan not up to your expectations?" She say, suddenly serious.

"How are we going to get to the Cornucopia and out safely?" I ask.

"Oh, the sewer tunnels." Chrissy says, as if it's a fact of life.


	11. The Plan

Chrissy refuses to tell me anything else, but I can guess pretty easily. She's going to use her complicated knowledge of electronics to wire a bomb under the Cornucopia. I imagine she's going to steal from weapons and food before she lets it off. I think I'm going to be the one to lure the Careers away. I think about who the Careers I'm going to face will be. Flicker, Blaze, and Eventus for the boys. All the males are still alive. Two of the girls are dead. I think about Celebra and Furtia. Dead. Probably being shipped home. Killed by the girl tinkering with some suspicious wires next to me. That same girl also plans to use me as bait to destroy their supplies.

I look up at the skyscrapers. Are any of the other tributes in there? There's 12 alive. Half of the kids I saw in the interviews are dead. Only 2 districts have both tributes alive. 6 and 4. I think to Adriana. Its only been maybe 20 hours since we've been in this arena. We came here at sunset. I don't know how that works, because the Games always start broadcasting in the morning. _Maybe it's a fake sky? _Something in my head tells me the sky plays an important role, but I'm too lazy to figure out. My stomach is constantly moaning at me. The only thing I've eaten in here are some leaves I found. They tasted disgusting, but I remember from training that they were edible.

I burrow deeper into my jacket, clasping onto the warmth. Its bitter cold, and a wind is sweeping through the city. _I hate this arena. _In fact, I feel rather trapped. With these electronics, it will be easy for the Capitol to do what they want with us. I remember back to the Mutt, when I ran for the door. I remember how the door was locked. That wasn't coincidence. The Capitol _wanted_ me to confront the Mutt. The whole thing has me scared. I can walk into a building, and suddenly be locked there.

"I've got it!" Chrissy tells me. "I've got enough potential energy to create a small explosion."

"That's great." I tell her blankly. Its hard to feel excited when you're freezing cold.

"Okay. We just have to string some cord from some buildings into this, snip a wire or two and Kaboom!" She says with an evil smile.

"Wait here." She instructs me, even though I feel about as mobile as an ice block. She leaves and dashes into the nearest building. She comes back in a couple minutes with a bundle of wire.

"Ready?" She asks. I stand up, revealing my core to the bitter wind. Why didn't we rest inside? I still complain about it in my mind, although I'm pretty sure the Capitol is just waiting for us to enter one of the dark buildings for something from a horror movie to take place. The possibilities are endlesss. Chrissy puts the box of electric destruction onto the ground, wraps part of a wire around a screw that is sticking out and runs to a building.

"Follow me!" She says. I look left and right to make sure no tributes are around, and run after her. When we enter a building, she runs to the nearest electric outlet. She stuffs the cord in and ties a knot in the cord so it doesn't pop out. The whole time she was putting the cord in, I was waiting for her to be electrocuted.

"Do you know what to do?" She asks.

"Uhh... Yeah, but how do I know I won't die?" I answer, probably sounding like a coward.

"Oh, you won't. Trust me." She says assuringly. Yeah, because I'm going to trust anyone in the Hunger Games. We walk outside and she points to a building a ways off. "Go to that one!"

"Why can't I go here?" I ask, pointing to the building a block over.

"Don't argue with me!" She says, stuffing a wad of cord into my hand. She trots off to another building. I wonder why she thinks she is so superior to me, but I guess it doesn't matter. I walk off to the building she instructed. I walk in, and go to the nearest electric outlet. I tie a knot in the cord and stuff it into the outlet. No shock. Phew.

I walk back out, and she shows that she has been much more productive. She has two more cords going to other buildings. I wonder for a second where she got all the cord, but I can just see her with a knife hacking at a wall and tugging out cords.

She tells me that setup is complete. She pulls out a large cord that about as thick as my index finger. She tells me the next phase of the plan with a hushed whisper. She makes it sound complicated, but its objective is simple. Lure the Careers around that corner so I can stuff an identical box into the

Cornucopia. I nod in approval. She jumps into a sewer pipe. She waves goodbye, and wishes me good luck. I manage to wave back. I remember something. I'm kinda weaponless. But first I look at what the bomb consists of. I look at the box, and then at the surrounding buildings. I've been in this city long enough to notice that some of the buildings are identical to others. Why didn't she use this gray building that is much closer than that identical gray building. But then, it dawns on me.

She's going to destroy much more than the Cornucopia.


	12. The End

I stand where Chrissy left me, feeling uncertain.

In grade school, we learn all the basic sciences. But when we get to secondary school, we take a big test that determines our job for the rest of our life. If you are relatively good at a certain subject, then they will put you in that subject. Everybody else is sorted into the less popular ones. Then you spend all of secondary school learning about that subject. This last year was my first year of secondary school, and I was chosen to go into genetics. Would've been my career, but the Hunger Games changed that. Either I die a tribute, or become so stinking rich that I don't need to work. Good thing that I loathed genetics more than anything.

But I did pay attention in grade school to learn enough about electronics and conductivity. The most obvious thing I saw when she put those cords everywhere is that she was looking for a big boom. She is also ensuring her survival by hiding underground until its safe. She doesn't care if I live.

She doesn't even really need the Careers away from the campsite. In fact, I'm pretty sure they're out scanning the city for tributes to kill. She doesn't need the Careers gone to chuck a box into the golden horn. I'm wondering what to do when I realize there's only one think I can do.

_Run. And do it quickly._

I start sprinting away. My first concern is to get away from the buildings we put the wires in. But District 3 is also cunning. She probably planned ahead to make sure multiple buildings explode. All of a sudden I see a tribute walk by. He's unarmed, and I think he's from District 10. Not sure if the male from that district is even still alive. But my mind's racing so fast , that I don't even acknowledge his presence. I sprint to the other side of the road and continue running. The boy puts two and two together and starts running with me. He goes another direction because its weird to see other tributes and not kill them. Had my greatest concern been not to fly like the wind, I might have come up with a way to kill that boy.

I realize that the explosions could start any time now, and I run faster. Then I hear it, far off in the distance. Multiple explosions ring the sky, then the explosions become faster and more frequent. I'm tell myself that this will be like popcorn popping. Suddenly the explosions are within range and I turn around for a quick second to glance them. They're these monsters, and if I didn't know Chrissy was behind the explosions, I might be suspecting the Capitol. They rip the air, illuminating the sky and road. I wonder how Chrissy got the explosions so perfectly. Then I suspect the Capitol is also behind this. They must be setting some buildings to explode themselves. It makes sense, they want to make this look as scary as possible. Chrissy probably knows that the Capitol can't resist making this as climatic as possible. The Capitol is using Chrissy as a masquerade to devastate the city. Random explosions won't be read as real.

The explosions boom in front of me, and my hearing gets blown out. Fire roars throughout the city. The explosions are now on either side of me. I continue running although I keep falling over. This smoke is suffocating me. My hands dig into the grass by the sidewalk. _Will this be my last shot of the world? _All my senses are being affected now. Each explosion sends a painful shock wave into my eardrum. I'm sweating like a dog, and my tongue is dry with the smoke in the air. Each breath I take dies my lungs another shade of black. The smell of burnt rubber catches up with me. _How am I going to survive? _There's no way I can get out of the city now. As if to get rid of any hope further, the building besides me start to fall apart. I desperately crawl away towards the shadow of another building, but part of a wall cuts me and my

Any explosion now could kill me. The building right beside me is still intact. The Capitol's probably waiting a few epic moments before they kill me. I look in all directions madly for something to save me. Then I remember. _Chrissy's using the underground to keep her safe. _I look onto the road, and look for a manhole. Sure enough, there it is, shining yellow and orange with the fire all around. I leap drastically towards it. My palms scratch against the asphalt as I pull myself towards my only shot at living. _This is one door the Capitol can't lock._ I think as I reach it. I pull the cover back, and a ladder descends into unknown darkness. I lower myself into the hole. My palms and arms are covered in multiple scratches, and blood is running down my shoulder. The window by me must have broken while I lay there in the grass. As my head goes below ground level, I take one last shot at the real world.

It looks like the Apocalypse. Buildings are collapsing. The sky is died black. The sun rises on one end of the street, but barely shines in the smoke that fills the air. I wonder how I'm going to see anything down in the black emptiness below me. _I could beg some people to sponsor me and give me a flashlight. _But I doubt the parachute would be allowed. It would explode in the multiple explosions that still ring the sky. I go to the bottom of the ladder. I touch the ground with my foot. Seems dry enough. I lower myself onto the ground, and curl into a ball.

I think of who must have died in the explosion. The boy I met as I ran, he's definitely dead. I tap the ground. My hearing's been affected, I can barely hear the ring of metal against my fingernail. I pat the ground around me, making sure that if I roll over, it won't be to a plummeting death. No dangerous drops. I think of Julia. The Capitol must be beside themselves, watching us tributes try in desperation as we try to evade the explosions. _I was going to die._ How happy a thought. If I hadn't seen the manhole in the road, where would I be? Would the hovercraft be taking me away? Would they leave me to roast?

I sit up, and decide I need to do a physical checkup. I poke and prod my limbs. My left arm got a pretty serious scratch. I remove my hood from my jacket, I tear it into a long strip, and wrap it around my arm. My leg got a burn


End file.
